How serious are America’s mayors? · Incorporated city
Lowell, MA
120,418 people, 2024 · Census GEOID 2537000 · Census profile · mayors: being verified · the council picks the mayor (26 of 20 years on record)
Overall in 2023, Lowell ranked #227 of 340 cities and 5th of 14 in its peer group, on 8 of 9 measures. Weigh the measures yourself · how ranks are made
Its peer group is Lowell and the 13 cities most like it in 2005 (size, income, poverty, industry, growth, density, place), fixed since: Lynn MA, Elizabeth NJ, Bridgeport CT, Lakewood NJ, Allentown PA, New Bedford MA, Worcester MA, Dearborn MI, Brockton MA, Waterbury CT, Yonkers NY, Grand Rapids MI, Gresham OR · on the map, and why
| Topline | 2005–2024 | Latest rank | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall rankamong all cities with a score that year | #227 of 340 cities · 5th of 14 in its peer group · 2023 | #203 | #315 | #178 | #131 | #128 | #143 | #193 | #241 | #241 | #296 | #226 | #171 | #175 | #207 | #209 | #213 | #248 | #284 | #227 | #221 | |
| people · size, not ranked | 103,668 | 103,673 | 104,019 | 104,887 | 106,024 | 106,782 | 107,774 | 108,803 | 109,757 | 110,537 | 111,142 | 111,226 | 111,738 | 111,362 | 110,997 | 115,834 | 117,970 | 118,510 | 119,153 | 120,418 | ||
| net movers per 100 residents · estimate · higher is better | #225 of 340 cities · 12th of 14 in its peer group | -1.2 | -0.9 | -0.5 | +0.1 | +0.3 | — | +0.0 | +0.0 | -0.0 | -0.3 | -0.4 | -0.6 | -0.6 | -0.7 | -0.7 | -0.3 | -1.0 | -1.1 | -0.8 | -0.6 | |
| new homes per 1,000 residents · higher is better | #224 of 271 cities with data · 7th of 9 in its peer group with data | 3.0 | — | — | — | — | 0.4 | 0.8 | 0.2 | — | 0.9 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.4 | 3.3 | 1.6 | 0.3 | 0.4 | 1.0 | 0.9 | |
| rent as % of income · lower is better | #133 of 340 cities · 2nd of 14 in its peer group | 24.7% | 23.8% | 22.4% | 19.5% | 21.8% | 22.3% | 22.7% | 24.6% | 28.6% | 27.1% | 26.9% | 24.3% | 26.3% | 22.7% | 23.9% | — | 27.7% | 25.1% | 27.3% | 23.4% | |
| per 100,000 residents · lower is better | #122 of 304 cities with data · 6th of 14 in its peer group | 1.9 | 12.5 | 2.9 | 6.7 | 4.7 | 2.8 | 2.8 | — | 3.6 | 5.4 | — | — | 0.9 | 3.6 | 3.6 | 5.2 | 5.1 | 5.1 | 1.7 | 4.2 | |
| per 100,000 residents · lower is better | #53 of 295 cities with data · 4th of 13 in its peer group with data | — | — | — | 31.5 | 33.0 | 29.0 | 31.5 | 35.8 | 45.6 | 48.9 | 27.9 | 11.7 | 12.5 | 30.5 | 24.3 | 31.9 | 39.8 | 60.8 | — | 19.1 | |
| jobs · size, not ranked | — | — | — | — | — | — | 33,485 | 34,251 | 36,529 | 35,304 | 36,959 | 38,409 | 39,943 | 41,988 | 41,637 | 38,808 | 38,046 | 38,537 | 39,327 | — | ||
| points ahead of the metro · higher is better | #180 of 329 cities with data · 7th of 12 in its peer group with data · 2023 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | +0.7 | +4.4 | -5.5 | +2.4 | +1.4 | +2.7 | +3.7 | -2.1 | +0.4 | -3.5 | -4.0 | -0.3 | — | |
| people · size, not ranked | — | — | — | — | — | — | 50,428 | 52,484 | 50,370 | 51,453 | 51,613 | 57,028 | 54,411 | 55,594 | 63,421 | — | 57,613 | 54,819 | 60,383 | 64,474 | ||
| % of workforce · lower is better | #211 of 340 cities · 4th of 14 in its peer group | — | — | — | — | — | — | 12.7% | 11.5% | 13.6% | 10.4% | 7.9% | 5.7% | 5.1% | 6.9% | 4.3% | — | 4.8% | 4.1% | 5.7% | 5.5% | |
| % of promises funded · not ranked: 38 cities report | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| surplus as % of revenue · higher is better | #274 of 314 cities with data · 9th of 14 in its peer group | -1% | -2% | 8% | 10% | 15% | 16% | 16% | 13% | 10% | 7% | 7% | 8% | 7% | 6% | 5% | 11% | 16% | 12% | 1% | -2% | |
| dollars per resident · lower is better | #201 of 314 cities with data · 9th of 14 in its peer group | $2,936 | $2,656 | $2,897 | $2,735 | $2,912 | $2,761 | $2,982 | $3,051 | $2,904 | $2,701 | $2,661 | $2,886 | $2,741 | $2,727 | $2,476 | $2,767 | $2,920 | $2,825 | $2,942 | $3,406 |
Click a row for its source and its rank in every year. 1st is best whichever way the measure points. A rank is out of all 340 cities, or out of its peer group of 14; where some had no value that year it says “with data” and counts only those. An em dash is a year the source does not hold for Lowell. A greyed homicide figure is a year the FBI holds as a transition year for this department. What each row is, and is not, is on the main page, with a link to every source in Sources.